Police find body in missing Rotherham mother case

Laura Wilson was last seen by friends near her home on Saturday night

A body has been found by police searching for a missing teenage mother in South Yorkshire.

Laura Wilson, 17, was last seen by friends on Saturday night close to her home in the Holmes area of Rotherham.

Police divers began searching the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation Canal after items thought to be Miss Wilson's were found nearby.

A 17-year-old local boy has been arrested on suspicion of assault and is helping police with their inquiries.

Miss Wilson's four-month-old daughter is being cared for by relatives, who have been informed of the discovery.

Family 'distraught'

South Yorkshire Police said the body was found in the canal near Steel Street on Tuesday afternoon.

The woman's body was found in the canal

A spokesman said: "The body has not been formally identified and a post-mortem is due to take place tomorrow morning.

"At this stage the death is being treated as suspicious as a matter of routine."

Earlier, police said the canal towpath was being treated as "a potential crime scene".

A spokesman said: "The family have not heard from Laura since Saturday evening and are understandably distraught and plead with the public to help them trace their loved one."